August 28th marks the 10 year anniversary of one of Drag City Record’s most peculiar and beautiful E.P.’s. Featuring 4 original songs by label owner, Rian Murphy, and mastermind songwriter, Will Oldham, along with many prominent Chicago musicians. {Archer Prewitt, Bill Callahan, Kelly Hogan, Edith Frost, Fred Lonberg-Holm, Jim O’ Rourke, even Albini assists– and many more.}

by Dave DeCastris |  August 2010

Happy Anniversary to Rian Murphy & Will Oldham's, "All Most Heaven" E.P.

With regards to the E.P. format and artists who still release them, they tend to come and go, a transistion piece for many bands and artists.  Rarely do they leave a listener in awe as “All Most Heaven” did 10 years ago and now.  Produced by Drag City label owner, Rian Murphy, with many from the Chicago indie underground helping out, this e.p, turns 10 years old this month. Aging, memories and survival has become marked by my favorite recordings;  this being one.

Four classically arranged pop songs, burst with color and group sing alongs to bizarro childish lyrics.  Some of the words being sung aren’t even words.  ”I am the bmal bahl” and “da da d hail the ga” make random appearances in the opening sing-along song, “Fall Again.”  Bill Callahan or Jim O’Rourke’s identifiable vocals (or are they Rian’s?) opens the record to be met by Will’s, who carries the rest of the E.P.  I’ve never figured this out about the E.P., who really is doing what? I don’t want to.  The joy in listening to this E.P. repeatedly is trying to identify the Chicago area musicians on it.   The joy is felt in every one of their performances.  Rarely does an E.P. with many collaborators sound so joyful and well-rehearsed. By the end of “Fall Again,” you’ll be singing along like a child, giddy, or a pirate, drunk.

Rarely does nonsense feel this religious, rejoiceful and absurd.  Is this listening experience kinda like falling in love with a crazy person?  Or  maybe to some it’s like believing in a random idea put forth by one of the many crazy religious organizations out there involving their money making myths about the Lord, God, Creation? Sure and sure.

Some Lyrics from Rian Murphy & Will Oldham's, "All Most Heaven" E.P.

I’ve never figured out the lyrics to any of the songs on this E.P., I don’t want to.  The way they sit, sung so passionately by Oldham on top of classical pop arrangements and major melodies are mesmerizing.  Chords and vocals are performed so smooth for anyone’s ears.  Your elders can cook afternoon soup to this and hum like many do to Andrea Bocelli records on Saturday and Sunday late afternoons. Rian Murphy, Archer Prewitt, Jim O’ Rourke and God knows who else must have been a joy to watch in the studio.  This is one of the finest collaborations ever caught on tape.  For years I’ve had this theory that Stephen Malkmus of Pavement makes an unlisted, vocal guest appearance behind Oldham during the 2:30 mark on track 2.  I doubt it but this is the myth I’ve created for myself listening to this E.P. for 10 years.  Take a listen and then create your own.  That is what it means to love music.

Track 2, “Fall and Raise It On,” contains these random lines;  ”sell me a peach o’ the ba ho… ate for the sake of all… waig an as’ a tode…”  Phonetically absurd, Oldham taps into what I’ve always assumed is a sailor’s heartbreak on tracks 2 & 3, companion pieces based on subtle references to boating or being a sailor?  Maybe just being drunk in love?  Strings, horns and backup singers weave ooos and ahhhs below and above the ocean’s moans.  ”Song of Most” recalls John Cale’s, “Paris 1919.”  Bouncing strings and congos rise to pass through a pointless chorus eventually joining subtle back up singers giving way to an amazing line that goes;  ”ah ee stood ape-hole.”  The song continues to rise, the strings magnificent, the background ‘ahhs’ louder, washboard and timpani join in.

Just when you’re accepting this E.P. may contain the most beautiful 3 songs you’ve ever heard that mean nothing and feel everything, the last cut takes shape, “Song Of All.”  It’s a slow reward for a closer requiring about 1:50 till the rest of the gang joins in briefly for what remains of this 4 song masterpiece.  It ends and you want to repeat track 1, “Fall Again.”

Featuring 2 of indie rock’s most prominent influences in Chicago area label owner, Rian Murphy (Drag City), and a critically acclaimed songwriter, Will Oldham (Bonnie Prince Billie/Palace Brothers), nothing defines the beutiful strange midwestern/Chicago music scene pre-Yankee Hotel Foxtrot so well as this does.  This E.P. is a reminder that there was beautiful, colorful, sounds bursting from the Chicago underground before Wilco exposed some of it’s seeds to the world.  10 years have passed, hipsters & developers moved in to take over the neighborhoods and some of these brilliant musicians moved west, east and out.   Some of you just missed it, this E.P.’s a reminder as to how great the ’90s Chicago underground indie scene was.

“All Most Heaven” is a little fertile musical reminder of a Pre-Yankee Chicago.

dD |  sMs

Sock Monkey Sound

10. Saves the Day-Stay What You Are
When I first heard Saves the Day, I felt their music was melodramatic, annoying, and obsolete. Some of my friends in college had taken a liking to their second album, Through Being Cool, which irritated me; I had no reason to listen to a band with such naive, predictable, and emotionally obvious songs. When Stay What You Are came out, I, again, had a small army of friends singing the band’s praises. Around the third time I heard “Freakish,” I stopped my complaining and bought my own copy of the album. Almost a full decade later, I still listen to this album once every couple months. The hooks, melodies, lyrics, and guitar riffs are still melodramatic, annoying, and predictable, but I am, thankfully, no longer missing out on all the fun.

9. tie: Wilco-Yankee Hotel Foxtrot / Promise Ring-Wood/Water
I went to see Jeff Tweedy play solo at the Abbey Pub shortly after Yankee Hotel Foxtrot was recorded, so my first impression of many of those songs came from that performance. When I finally heard the album, several months before its actual release, I was disappointed. What happened to all the lush textures and instant hooks from Summerteeth? The album was so frustrating, in fact, that I kept listening to it—over and over and over. After a few months, I realized that the album sacrificed none of the haunting emptiness of the show at Abbey, but added SO much more.

I finally purchased the album, on its official street date, along with Promise Ring’s Wood/Water, which was released on the same day. I spent a great deal of time listening to both albums, discovering the many quirks and value buried beneath the expectations I had for each band. Both of these midwestern bands occupied a special place in my heart, and both of these records saw a band challenging themselves and their fans.

One of these records was a successful gamble, helping the band gain more fans and fame; the other, a polarizing, rarely cited, and misunderstood artifact, that likely contributed to the band’s demise. My mom owns one of these albums. You probably don’t have to guess which is which, but I have fond memories of driving around in my car and letting the beauty of each of these records unfold.

8. Belle and Sebastian-Dear Catastrophe Waitress
By 2003, I had written this band off. I was wrong; this album is impeccable. I think they have my attention forever now. Had “Your Cover’s Blown” been included on this album, Dear Catastrophe Waitress would be closer to the top of the list.

7.Beck-Sea Change
I hate to wish this upon anyone, and I know this isn’t an original sentiment, but sometimes I think I might be happier if all my favorite artists were in a constant state of romantic disrepair. A break-up certainly helped Beck on this album. Beyond the moving depictions of loneliness, regret, and bitterness on Sea Change, however, lies some of Beck’s most thoughtful song-craft. The production is similarly attentive and captivating. It’s difficult to compare this album to his early touchstones, but I know none of his other work from the 2000s stacks up to Sea Change.

6. The Shins- Oh, Inverted World
This music sounds like it was made by aliens. Although I enjoy all of their albums, the quirky self-production gives Oh, Inverted World an edge over their two follow-ups. This record was perfect for lonely winter drives, or sitting at home in candlelight. Yeah, I know that sounds cheesy, but James Mercer found more mood, atmosphere, and character in his basement with some free software than he has ever been able to find in fancy studios with producers. Some groups are more intriguing before they learn to sound like a band, and that is certainly the case with The Shins.

5. Radiohead- In Rainbows
I do love Kid A, and feel a little strange about choosing the newest of Radiohead’s four impressive albums of the decade, but I think it’s a best album. In Rainbows has more depth than Kid A or Amnesiac, and is far more elegant than Hail to the Thief. Plus, the album captures a variety of tones and moods without sounding inconsistent or scatterbrained. In my opinion, it took Radiohead a decade to properly follow-up Ok Computer, and it might be a while before they can do it again. Let’s enjoy.

4.Arcade Fire- Funeral
When I first heard this album, I didn’t think I was hearing a band who would be selling out giant venues, appearing on SNL, and garnering attention of Davids (Bowie and Byrne). I did know that Funeral was the most stunning debut I had heard in a long time. This album has a rare kind of magic. Funeral didn’t leave my car for months. How does Merge keep doing it!

3. Ken Stringfellow-Touched
Ken Stringfellow is not only a founding member of one of my favorite bands, The Posies, but also a sideman for both R.E.M. and the current incarnation of Big Star. To put it mildly, he is a member of no less than three of my all-time favorite groups. If I ever meet him, however, I would be most interested in asking about Touched. This is not only his best solo work, but also stands up against anything by The Posies. I can’t explain why his lyrics are so fascinating to me, or how it is that they sometimes make me cringe in a GOOD way, but the appeal of the music is easy—haunting and beautiful instrumentation, tasteful production, and a unique melodic palette.

2. The Wrens-The Meadowlands
Apparently, this album was a pain to make. It shows, but not because of perfectionist production values or complex song arrangement; the tunes and production are loose, jilted, and unpredictable. Each song is filled with charm and atmosphere. The Meadowlands is one of those albums that gives me a new favorite song every ten listens or so. By now, every song on the album has been my favorite at some point. This band, especially on this album, embodies what I love most about rock music—regular guys making wonderful noise.

1. Idlewild-100 Broken Windows
This album has stayed in my regular rotation for almost ten years. Sure, Idlewild have since become more competent musicians, and thoughtful songwriters, but 100 Broken Windows is full of ideas and energy that can only be captured once in a band’s career. It has the surprises and impatience of early Superchunk, the mysteriousness of ‘80s R.E.M., and a bit of the The Smiths’ wit. I can’t think of any album, from any decade, that makes me wish I was in the band more than this one, and I think it’s because 100 Broken Windows is a perfect balance of some of my favorite music. I have been searching for another record like this since 2000 and I am not sure I will ever find one.

—-Kevin Schwitters

Sock Monkey Sound

Who: Wilco with special guest, Tortoise

What: A concert. Duh

Where: The UIC Pavilion

When: October 19th

I’m often prone to beginning reviews and essays and such with one of several reassurances. Either that (despite possibly nebulous evidence to the contrary) I am actually well informed enough to provide a quality review of the topic at hand, or that in declaring my personal biases I am freeing the reader to discount my opinion for clearly shallow reasons even though I think they should place trust in what I have to say. It’s a self reflexive, vaguely post modern ploy meant to distract from the fact that I didn’t take any notes or do any actual journalistic work. Fuck it. I think it works.

Here’s the part where I confess my bias. I love Wilco. I hear accusations of dad rock and I don’t really care. That’s not even a real term. A lot of dads like Sonic Youth. Would anyone accuse them of being bland, or passé, or people who wear high waisted jeans, or any other of the more derogatory adjectives associated with being a dad? The Wilco of late is not any more retro sounding than any one of a slew of roots rock bands. The accusations most likely stem from the fact that the band has been in existence for a good 15 years and has (seemingly) left behind the noisier, avant leaning aspects of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot and A Ghost Is Born to return to more conventional stylings. Although that criticism is valid on some levels, it shows a lack of deeper listening to the more recent releases. In the end, no matter the dressing, you can’t beat a folk song that grabs your heart and squeezes your mind grapes. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

I love Wilco. I find them to be one of the more perfect internalizations of American music in the last 50 years. I would even go as far as to argue that (my love for Jay Bennett not withstanding) the current line up is Wilco’s most accomplished. These guys are a god damned mechanized assault squad. These songs sound like they do on the record and, in many cases, are bigger, louder, and more dynamic. This becomes even more evident when they play Via Chicago.

Quick! What’s your favorite Wilco song? Poor Places? They played it and it sounds the way you remember it. Except now Nels Cline is in the band. He’s a crazy free jazz nutjob (the man once covered the entirety of John Coltrane’s Interstellar Space on guitar!) so the chattering, dissonant, electronic burbles in the latter half of the song become more swirling and encompassing. Name another song! Passenger Side? Really? Ok well they didn’t play that. But they did play Casino Queen. They played for more than 2 ½ hours. During that time, with nods to George Harrison jammed up against krautrocking epics, in between lushly orchestrated chamber pop, one begins to realize that this is a band that defies any easy categorization beyond American Rock and Roll. It becomes entirely ok for Wilco to record an easy going love song like You and I instead of something as damaged as She’s a Jar (neither of which were played, by the way. That’s ok because they opened with Via Chicago and threw down a stellar Shot in The Arm because America is nothing if not society’s great melting pot. A place where any myriad of influences can fit comfortably next to one another as long as you cushion them with fantastic melodies (luckily this shallow metaphor is able to ignore America’s rich history of bigotry that goes along with the cultural diversity). And like Wilco, America isn’t just for dads. Despite those Steely Dan comparisons (yuck!), America is for everyone.

Oh wait. Quick PS: Tortoise was reliably entertaining in the opening slot. They sounded great, although I find them slightly boring in long stretches. Tortoise should open for all of my favorite bands.

Final Verdict: 5 out of 5 Kiss Covers.

Alex Danger Stewart will be eating those negative words about Steely Dan someday.

Sock Monkey Sound